


Diamonds and Dragons

by RandomlyPassedBy



Category: Twisted-Wonderland (Video Game)
Genre: How Do I Tag, M/M, New Year's Eve, New Year's Kiss, Promises, Valentine's Day, birthday planning, cake testing, garden date
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-14 09:21:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28668390
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RandomlyPassedBy/pseuds/RandomlyPassedBy
Summary: A collection of mallekei drabbles.Chapter 1: New Year PromiseChapter 2: Birthday PlanningChapter 3: Ice-creamChapter 4: Doze offChapter 5: Valentine's Day
Relationships: Cater Diamond/Malleus Draconia
Comments: 6
Kudos: 38





	1. New Year Promise

Cater walks out to the balcony, the night breeze giving him a calm break after all the festivities inside. It was New Year's eve, and Kalim invited a number of NRC alumni to his party. It was nice to see all his old friends again and catch up, but the evening was long and Cater could only laugh for so long. 

He takes a sip of the wine he brought out with him, leaning over the balcony and looking up at the night sky. The stars were brighter here compared to Pyroxene. 

"May I join you?"

Cater was brought out of his musings when Malleus approaches him. He looks over the handsome fae, all dressed up in black and looking as dashing as he was from their college days. Cater will never lose that flutter in his heart whenever he really looks at Malleus no matter how many years they've been together.

"Of course you can, dear boyfriend," he chuckles.

Malleus moves to his side and bumps their shoulders together, a soft smile on his face.

"Are you enjoying the party?" Cater asks.

"Of course. I rarely get invited to them, so every party is a memorable event."

Cater lets out an awkward laugh, not knowing how to respond.

"I was joking." He playfully nudged Cater's shoulder. "Asim knows how to throw an enjoyable party. Thank you for inviting me, Diamond."

Cater puts down his wine glass on one of the tables there. "No problem! I was surprised you're able to attend honestly. I thought you'd be busy with your prince duties on New Year's eve."

Malleus hums. "There will always be things that needs to be done but I can take one night off. Besides," he cups Cater's face and pecks his cheek. "I've missed you." 

The human feels his face grown warm, both from the drinks and his boyfriend's affection. 

"I miss you too. Come to think of it, isn't this the first time we're spending New Year's eve together?"

"It is."

They've been boyfriends for years now, but they've never spent the new years together. Cater sometimes have work and other times he spends it with his friends. He tried to spend it with Malleus on some years but the prince usually had work as well.

Cater didn't really mind. It was merely a show of time passing by, in the end it's just another ordinary day and night. It was merely human tradition to celebrate a year of living and to look forward to a new one. 

"I've never asked this before, but how do the fairies celebrate the new year? Do they have a grand celebration like us humans too?" Cater never really thought of it, but maybe Malleus never really cared for the new year.

"We don't have a big celebration like you do. As a matter of fact, we don't really follow the human calendar. Our "years" are counted by the passing of the seasons. When spring comes after winter, we have a celebration for surviving through another cycle of seasons. I guess that would be our version of the new year."

Cater listens to all this in wonder. After spending so many years together, Cater learned so many new things about Malleus and the fairy cultures. And yet there's always new things he still doesn't know. Cater is grateful for Malleus to accept him, a human, as his lover. He reaches for Malleus' hand and interlaces their fingers together.

"Sometimes I think I know your culture and then sometimes I feel like I only know the bare minimum."

Malleus laughs. "That's what I feel about human culture too. We're learning."

Cater smiles, leaning his head on the fae's shoulder. 

"There's one tradition we do that is related to the passing of a year." Malleus moves away from Cater and turns to face him. 

"At the end of winter, a person can give an item of theirs that they kept for a year to another. Along with the item is a promise to spend every season with the person." 

Malleus reaches to the back of his neck and unclasp a necklace. Cater gasps when Malleus pulls out the necklace, recognizing it.

"That's why you've been wearing that from the start of the year?" He asked Malleus about it once, as Malleus rarely wore accessories. Malleus simply smiled and said he wanted to try wearing a necklace. It was a simple chain with a round silver plate in the middle.

The fae smiles and puts the necklace on Cater, kissing the plate before letting it go.

"With this, I promise to spend every following seasons with you."

Cater feels himself tearing up. But he had to make it clear, hear it directly.

"Malleus, is this a proposal?"

"It's a promise. We can't get married yet, I still have a lot of things to do to ensure that we can do it, but we'll get there." Malleus tilts his head. "Unless, you don't want to get married?"

The human tackles the fae into a hug, a few tears slipping out but he's laughing. They've talked about marriage before, but Cater didn't expect Malleus to promise on it so soon. 

"Of course I want to get married! Especially to you!"

Malleus laughs, returning the hug. "Then it's settled."

They let go of each other after a while, Cater wiping away the few stray tears.

"Oh! I should give you something too." 

Cater takes off one of his earrings, a simple silver band. "You don't have to wear it all the time, since I know you don't like earrings. But you can wear it tonight, I guess?"

He moves to put the earring on Malleus, the fae bending down slightly to accommodate him. Malleus had his ears pierced during one of his early years but he ended up not wearing earrings. Now he has a reason to wear one.

"Thank you. I'll treasure it."

Suddenly, there is a loud commotion from inside the building.

"I think the countdown is starting," Cater guessed.

Malleus puts a hand on Cater's cheek, tilting his face up.

"Shall we partake in the human culture of New Year's eve as well?"

_**Five!** _

"Oh ho? You know about this one?"

_**Four!** _

"Of course. I've been waiting to participate with you each year."

_**Three!** _

Cater laughs. "This is your lucky year then."

_**Two!** _

"Every year that I spend with you is lucky."

_**One!** _

Malleus leans down and kisses him, looking forward to a brand new year with brand new promises. 

_**Happy new year!!** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes I am doing this for Mallekei as well. If you follow the jpn fandom, they have a challenge where they draw/write in an hour using the themes set for the week. So I decided to follow this challenge as well, because why not? I hope I can write more frequently by doing this hehe we'll see!
> 
> This week's themes are New Year, Fairy and Promise. For Mallekei they give three themes and you can just use one of the three but I decided to be extra and tried to incorporate all three. Hope it went well! I went a bit over an hour today tho.
> 
> Also TMI, the silver plate necklace? There is "Cater D." engraved on it and after noticing it Cater asks "D for Diamond or D for Draconia?" teasingly to which Malleus replies "Cater darling, how about D for darling for now?"


	2. Birthday Planning

"Diamond, do you have time? There is something I would like to discuss with you."

Cater looks up from his phone to see Malleus standing in front of his desk. He was browsing through Magicame after the lecture was over and thought everyone had already left the hall.

"Sure Malleus-kun! What is it?" He pockets his phone and pats the seat beside him, inviting the fae to sit down.

Malleus sits and turns to face him. "I would like to request your assistance in planning a party."

Cater grins. "You've come to the right person!" he chuckles. "What kind of party is it?"

"It's a birthday party. Mine."

The Heartslabyul third year recalls today's date. "Oh that's right, your birthday is this Friday huh?"

Malleus smiles, happy that Cater remembered his birthday. "Yes. It's the first time I'm celebrating here instead of home so I want to plan a party at Diasomnia."

"That sounds fun~ So what do need help with? Decorations? Party games?"

The question is met with confused blinking. "Yes. Those." Malleus answers shortly.

Cater could see where this is going. "Have you thought of the amount of people you want to invite? Also the theme for the party? And food?"

The fae is silent. More blinking.

"...no."

The ginger laughs seeing how clueless Malleus is. 

"Okay we have a long task ahead of us Malleus-kun. Firstly..."

**Making a guest list**

"Since you're doing it at Diasomnia, there's not too many people you can invite. Have you thought of who you want to invite aside from the Diasomnia students?"

They are sitting on a bench under the apple tree in the courtyard, enjoying their lunch. 

"I'm planning to invite all the dorm leaders. Also some of our batch mates, like Hunt and Clover as well. And the child in Ramshackle. Perhaps I shall invite Spade and Trappola who are always with them too." While Malleus was listing down the names, a magic pen was writing it down on paper.

Cater takes a bite of his sandwich. "That's quite a lot of people."

"I don't want anyone to feel sad by not being invited."

That almost made Cater choke on his bread. He cleared his throat and calmed down. 

"Invite as many people as you like Malleus-kun, it'll be a great party."

**Deciding the cake**

Cater walks through the halls of Heartslabyul humming happily. He bumps into Trey on his way out of the building.

"Oh Cater. You're going somewhere?" the vice-leader asks noticing his casual clothes.

"I'm going out to town to help Malleus-kun try some cakes. You want anything?"

Trey raises his eyebrows. "Trying out cakes? With Malleus?"

Cater waves his hand dismissively. "Just helping him out for his birthday party."

The vice-leader was not convinced, but he let it slide. "Okay then. Have fun. Make sure you come back before 10."

"Yes mom~"

Cater meets up with Malleus at the school gates and they travel to the town. Cater finds it very fascinating looking at Malleus in casual clothes and without his horns. He claims it's easier to hide it in order to not get stared at too much in town.

"So there's two cake shops around the area, but I narrowed it down to this particular one since they have delivery services, so it'll be easier to get the cake delivered rather than having someone pick it up from the shop." Cater explains as they approach a quaint shop in a corner lot. 

They enter the shop and is greeted by the worker. 

"Welcome! Here to eat or to place an order?"

"We'd like to order a cake. Can we have a sample of some of the cakes?" Cater asks.

"Of course! Feel free to browse through our cakes and decide on the ones you'd like to try."

Cater thanked the worker and they move to the display cases. Malleus eyes widened seeing the amount of different flavours. 

"This is... a lot to go through."

The Heartslabyul student looks over the cakes. "Maybe it'll help to narrow down the type you want. Fruity? Creamy? With nuts?"

Malleus scans the cakes. "Chocolate."

"Okay. Then we'll go from there."

The fae picks out a few chocolate flavours and they sit down while waiting for the samples. Cater takes out his phone to take photos of the shop.

"Thank you for accompanying me, Diamond." 

Cater looks up from his phone. "No problem! I've always wanted to visit this shop anyway."

The worker then arrives and serve the cakes. Malleus cuts into one of the cakes immediately. 

"This one has nuts in it. I like the texture." He tries another one. "This one is more moist. It's sweeter too."

Cater listens to all this and nods. Malleus looks at the untouched fork at the side. 

"Are you not going to try them?"

The ginger lets out a nervous chuckle. "Well... I'm not actually a big fan of chocolate cakes, so my input is not really useful."

Malleus frowns hearing this. "You accompanied me all the way here. Yet, you are not going to take anything from it."

Cater hurriedly explains himself. "No no don't worry about it! I wanted to get out of the dorm anyway, and I don't mind having a bite, see?" He cuts a small portion of one of the cake slices and puts it in his mouth.

The sweet sugar flood his tastebuds and he tries his best not to pull a face.

"Oh this one has cherries in it too," he adds, tasting the sweet berry in his mouth.

Malleus still has the frown on his face, his cheeks slightly puffed out. Cater's mind tries to process the... adorable expression that he didn't think Malleus was capable of doing. 

The worker comes back to their table. "Are you satisfied with the cakes? If not, we also have a selection of ice-cream cakes in the freezer."

The fae's eyes lit up with the statement. "There are... ice-cream cakes?"

"Of course! I'll bring you to the display."

Malleus follows the worker to the ice-cream cake section, Cater looking on fondly from the table. He takes out his phone and snaps a picture of Malleus excitedly looking at the cakes. Without editing it, he posts the picture on Magicame.

_He has found the ice-cream cakes.  
_ _#caketasting #helikeschocolate #cay-kunadventures_

**Final check**

Cater finds himself at the Diasomnia dorm lounge early Friday morning. Malleus wanted to show him the party venue and decorations before they go to class. The dorm was already well-decorated, in its own special way. 

"Does it look okay?" Malleus asks.

"It's definitely shows off the Diasomnia party vibes. It's cool!"

The fae tilts his head. "Is the "vibe" different from a normal party?"

"Well... usually parties are slightly brighter. Sometimes they use bubbles and neon lights to make it more festive. But no worries, this definitely looks like a party!"

Malleus turns to Cater. "Thank you Diamond. For helping me plan this party. I never knew the process would be so enjoyable."

Cater laughs. "You're just saying that because you enjoyed trying out all the different cakes the other day, didn't you?"

Malleus smiles.

_I enjoyed planning the party because I got to spend more time with you._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a special post since there are three themes, so I'm planning to do all three (we'll see how it goes lol). So today's theme is Birthday! Just in time for his birthday tomorrow yay!
> 
> I definitely went too long for the cake testing part. I know no one does cake testing to buy their birthday cake but whatever. It's definitely not me wanting them to do cake testing because I couldn't write it when they were actually planning their wedding. No, of course not. (yes I did write a wedding planning-ish mallekei fic, check it out yo)
> 
> Not entirely satisfied with it, but it is what it is. Also I went 10 minutes over 1 hour, just to finish it up at the end.


	3. Ice-cream

"Okay, our first stop is 7-Eleven! Let's try making the trendy rainbow slurpee~"

Cater enters the small shop with Malleus in tow. They were on a dessert roadtrip to test out the many cold desserts in season. Cater listed out all the shops and desserts in advance and asked Malleus if he wanted to join the trip, which surprisingly the fae agreed. 

"Have you had slurpee before Malleus-kun?" Cater idly asks as he takes a large cup and starts dispensing the first layer of the slurpee.

Malleus observes the process over his shoulder, green eyes taking in the different flavours and colours of the slurpee. 

"No, this is my first time. Are these ice?"

The ginger starts on the third colour of the slurpee. "Hmmm they are sort of ice? It's like a mix between ice and water. It's really sweet though." Cater pulls a face remembering the taste.

After dispending all the available flavours, Cater puts a lid on the cup and sets it on the available table. 

"This turned out prettier than I expected~ completely Magicammeable~" With practiced movements, he takes out his phone and snaps a few pictures of the drink. After finding a few that he's satisfied with, he hands the cup to Malleus.

"Okay, have a taste Malleus-kun. I'll go pay for it."

He goes to the counter and pays for the drink. When he returns to Malleus, he finds the fae drinking the semi-frozen drink at a face pace.

"Wai- you're drinking it so fast! Do you not get brain freeze??" 

Malleus stops drinking, the cup only quarter-full now. "My insides are always warm, so I don't think I'm capable of achieving that." 

"Lucky. Judging by the amount you drank I guess you like it?"

The fae finishes the rest of the drink in one go. "Yes. It's really cold and sweet."

Cater laughs, glad that he didn't have to drink any of it. "Okay, but I hope you still have room for some more. This is only the first stop~"

They move to the second store. The sun was up high on the sky and Cater regrets not buying a cold drink for himself. Malleus walks alongside him, eyes looking around the town and the people. 

They reach the second stop, a small stall on a corner of the street. There was only a single man taking of the stall.

"I'll have one special coconut ice-cream please," Cater orders the specialty of the stall.

The man scoops up the white ice-cream and plates it on a small coconut husk and places two small spoons in it.

"Enjoy!"

"Thank you!"

Cater holds the ice-cream around, trying to find a good background to take a picture of it. 

"Oh Malleus-kun, stay there."

He found that having Malleus with his all black outfit as the background works nicely as a contrast. And if his Magicame followers are curious as to who he was out with, well, that's just a bonus point.

"Okay, done! Here you go Malleus-kun~" Cater hands the ice-cream to him.

Malleus looks at him curiously. "Don't you want to try it?"

"Hmm?" Cater looks up from his phone, busy typing his caption. "No, go ahead."

Slightly hesitant, Malleus takes a spoonful of the ice-cream. The coconut taste was really prominent in the ice-cream and tasted amazing. He tries it with the coconut bits on the husk and thinks of how amazing humans are with their food. He scoops another spoon of the ice-cream and coconut.

"Diamond, here."

The Heartslabyul student looks up and sees Malleus holding the spoon in front of his face. He feels his face heat up.

"I-it's okay I told you-"

"I insist."

Looking at the fae's determined face, Cater had no choice but to open his mouth and eat the ice-cream. Flustered, he looks away from Malleus.

"It's delicious."

Cater didn't see it, but Malleus smiles.

After Malleus finished the ice-cream, they move to the next stop. This time, it was a dessert shop. They sit down at one of the tables and a waiter comes over bringing the menus.

"Here are our best-sellers. And we have a special discount for couples if you order the Banana Split," the waiter grins down at the two of them.

"We're not a couple-" "Let's order that one then."

Cater sharply turns to Malleus, the fae similarly having a confused face.

"Eh?"

"Hmm?"

The waiter awkwardly steps back. "O~kay I'll bring you a Banana Split then..."

Cater is the first to speak up after the waiter left. 

"Why'd you say that? We're not a couple? The discount is not that much anyway."

This made Malleus frown. "I thought this was a date? Did I... misunderstand?"

The panicking man quickly thought back to what he said to Malleus before.

_"Okay~ it's a date then!"_

"Oh my god- I meant it as joke, it's just a saying."

He only realized how bad that sounded after he already said it. Malleus face looks hurt.

"... I see."

Cater is confused. "Wait, Malleus-kun you thought this was a date, and you agreed to it?"

"Yes!" the fae spat out angrily. Cater flinched at the sudden change and Malleus sighs deeply. "I'm sorry. I guess the feelings have been one-sided and I didn't notice."

The realization hit Cater and he finds himself reeling. "No no no no wait. Wait for a moment."

He thinks back to all the times they spent together. Malleus just treated him normally, he didn't get any special treatment. There was the occasional tease, but surely he does that with everyone-

Oh god.

_Oh my god._

Cater was so comfortable with Malleus that he forgot Malleus is an ancient being feared by many. He forgot that only a few people dared to even converse with Malleus, and that the fae only has a few close acquaintances. He forgot that the fae _definitely_ treats him differently than everyone else, even if to Cater, it was a normal interaction. 

"Malleus-kun you like me?!" Cater blurts out the realization.

The fae looks away, his lips pursed. "If it wasn't clear enough, yes Diamond I do like you."

Was that, was that a blush on his cheeks? Cater feels himself blush as well, with the confession and the unexpected sight. 

"Aa~and here's your order! Hope you enjoy~" The waiter arrives and serves the Banana Split, breaking the silence. 

Still trying to process his thoughts, Cater stayed silent while Malleus digs in the dessert. He observes as the frown on the man's face disappears with each bite of the treat. He chuckles at the action, and also at the situation they were in.

"Malleus-kun I'm sorry."

"You don't have to-"

"No listen," he cuts Malleus off. "I'm sorry because I didn't realize your feelings. I forgot we are from different worlds, as a teenager I couldn't figure out that you like me that way, because you treated me like a normal friend. But now I understand."

He nervously extends a hand and holds Malleus' hand. "I l-like you too. A lot. I did use this as an excuse to hang out with you. Because I didn't think you would _like_ like me."

Cater mentally facepalms himself. He did not imagine to be confessing so lamely. He shyly looks at the fae's face, unsure of how the other would take it.

Malleus lets out a laugh before covering it behind a hand. Cater takes that as a good sign, finding himself chuckling as well.

"Lilia said people do silly things when they are in love. I guess I understand that now."

For the however many times that day, Cater feels the heat travel up his face. 

"L-love?? Malleus-kun please slow down, I'm still only a teenager."

Malleus merely smiles and takes the hand holding his firmly. 

"Okay, call it whatever you want."

Cater looks at their intertwined hands and has the strongest urge to take a picture of it.

"Ah- I didn't take a picture of the dessert!"

He looks at the half-eaten treat, a sad puddle of pink and white with some bananas.

"Then we'll order a new one. And this time," Malleus smirks at him. "Get the couple discount."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haaaaa I'm not very satisfied with how this flowed but, it is what it is. Maybe it's because I already wrote them having a cake-tasting "date" in the previous one so I wanted to switch it up a bit but hmmm not entirely satisfied with the misunderstanding and resolution part. But oh well, it ain't too bad. Hope you find it bearable and adorable!


	4. Doze off

Cater sighs in relief as he enters his apartment. He had a full schedule today, whisked away by his manager from 5am for the music show pre-recording, then went to a live radio show, went back to the music station for the live performance, and then spent the rest of the day recording his new MV. The recording went well into the night, thankfully everything went well so now he's finally back home.

He drops his bag on the couch, and enters his room. He's greeted with the sight of Malleus asleep at the desk, head over crossed arms on the table. Cater chuckles at the awkward sight of the usually composed man. He quietly approaches the table.

There were papers scattered around the table, and a discarded pen at the side. It's probably his work documents, by the looks of it. Cater observes the sleeping beauty, his dark eyelashes contrasting beautifully over his pale complexion, his equally dark hair framing his peaceful sleeping face, mouth slightly open. 

The ginger smiles at the sight that only he gets to see, the vulnerable and human side of the otherwise stoic man. He brushes a strand of hair away from his lover's face, and softly pats his head.

"Malleus, wake up. Go sleep on the bed."

Cater watches as Malleus frowns, before blearily blinking his eyes open, revealing those beautiful green eyes, shining bright even under the room's dim lighting. The man straightens up, and looks around the room.

"What time is it?" he asks, his voice hoarse from sleep.

"It's almost 2am." Cater moves to the vanity table across the room and takes off his earrings and other accessories. 

Malleus makes a confused sound. "And you just got back?"

"Yeah," the singer sits down and starts taking off his makeup. "I told you I'd be back late today. We had an MV shooting."

The black-haired man hums. "I must've have forgotten. I was waiting for you."

Cater revels in the statement. It was really nice to know that someone was waiting for him at home. He feels loved. 

"So sweet of you to wait for me. But you didn't have to," he says, while running a cotton pad over his eyes, taking off his eye makeup. 

Malleus gets up from his seat and flops down face-first on their bed. He turns his head to Cater's direction. 

"I don't have to, but I wanted to. The bed is cold without you."

Cater ignores the way his heart got weak at the man's half-asleep words. "You don't have to finish your paperwork?" he asks instead.

The man on the bed groans. "Work can wait. I can't. Hurry up and come here."

The unusually whiny tone from the man makes Cater laughs. Malleus is like a different person when he is half-asleep. All his usual composure is gone and the needy side of him appears. At least that's how it is with Cater. 

Finished taking off his makeup, Cater gets up from the seat, only to head towards the bathroom. 

"Well, too bad for you. I'm gonna take a shower first."

Malleus rolls over and stares at the ceiling. "Fine. Leave your boyfriend here to freeze."

"Just pull some blankets over your dramatic ass, _your Highness_ ," Cater teases him before entering the bathroom. 

While he showers, Cater thinks about how lucky he is to have Malleus. At one point in his life, he made peace with the fact that he'll always return to an empty apartment. He's busy with the ever-changing and fast-paced entertainment industry anyway, not having much time for himself, much less anyone else. 

Until he met Malleus at one award show's afterparty, and they hit it off. He never imagined he would be in a relationship with the CEO of one of the largest entertainment company, but here they are. 

Malleus was the one who proposed that they start living together. Cater found no issues with it, knowing they were both usually busy, and would only get to see each other after work. The arrangement worked out, and now Cater always looks forward to coming back to Malleus. 

After he's done showering and changing into a large t-shirt (probably his boyfriend's) and sweatpants, he exits the bathroom to the sight of Malleus hogging their blanket and curled up facing the wall. Understanding the situation, Cater slowly dips into the bed and wraps his arms around Malleus from the back.

"Is my needy boyfriend upset that I left him alone in this big empty bed?" he teases.

The man says nothing, and doesn't budge. 

Cater hugs the cocoon of blankets tighter. "Ne~ won't you share the blankets with me? Don't you want to turn around and see this face that you've missed?"

It was only a matter of time. Cater knows his lover doesn't sulk for long, and he can't resist sleeping without Cater anyway. He waits a few seconds.

"...sing me a song and I'll consider it."

"Eh~?" Cater whines. "I've been singing the whole day! But fine, I'll spare a song for my dearly beloved."

He rolls over, laying on his back. He racks his brain for a suitable song. Deciding on one, he starts singing. 

_Hush now, my darling_   
_Close your eyes and sleep_   
_Waltzing the waves_   
_Diving in the deep_

_Stars are shining bright_   
_The wind is on the rise_   
_Whispering words_   
_Of long lost lullabies_

He sees Malleus roll over, a soft smile gracing his face, his half-lidded eyes looking fondly at Cater.

_Oh won't you come with me_   
_Where the moon is made of gold_   
_And in the morning sun_   
_We'll be sailing_

_Oh won't you come with me_   
_Where the ocean meets the sky_   
_And as the clouds roll by_   
_We'll sing the song of the sea_

Malleus drapes the blanket over the both of them, and pulls Cater close to him. He kisses Cater's forehead, and wraps his arms around the singer. 

"I love you," he whispers.

"I love you too. I'll see you in my dreams?" 

It's a thing they like to do. They would promise to meet in their dreams and sometimes, Cater really would dream of Malleus.

"It's a date then."

The two fall asleep in each other's arms, warm and content. In their dreams they would meet, and dance to the song of the sea. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I quite enjoyed writing this one <3


	5. Valentine's Day

The sun is shining bright in the sky. A lone figure stands outside the botanical garden, one hand busy scrolling through his phone, the other holding the the strap of his bag. A short while later, a bright green flash appears and Malleus arrives, making the person look up from his phone. 

"Diamond. Did you wait long?" 

Cater removes himself from leaning against the glass wall, and approaches the other. 

"Not really, I just got here five minutes ago."

Now standing in front of Malleus, the boy feels the urge to hug his boyfriend, or hold his hand. But he stopped himself, knowing Malleus doesn't like PDA as much as he did. So he opted to smile at the fae instead. 

"So, I assume we're having a garden date today? I brought the drinks and my camera like you told me to."

When Malleus asked him if he was free on Sunday for a date, he was honestly surprised. The Diasomnia third year has always been busy with school work and dorm duties, not to mention his Prince duties as well, so they rarely went on dates. Cater luckily was free and they agreed to meet up at the botanical garden. It was Malleus' idea so Cater let him arrange the date plans. 

Malleus holds out his hands. "I did plan a garden date, but not here. Take my hands."

Understanding the situation, Cater takes hold of both his hands and feels the wave of magic swirl around them. He feels the ground underneath his feet shift and holds on to Malleus tighter.

After a few seconds, the magic disperse and Cater could feel his feet on firm ground. He feels disoriented and moved to hold his boyfriend's arm. 

"Man, I can never get used to that," he breathes in.

The fae chuckles. "Maybe I'll hold you closer next time."

Cater playfully pinches the arm he was holding for the tease. He looks at where they are and let out a small gasp.

Tall trees stretch across the length of his vision, providing shade from the sun. Along the trees are various plants and flowers of different pastel shades, swaying lightly along the breeze. Cater feels like he stepped into a fairytale. 

"Where are we?" he asked.

"The castle garden. I would invite you in, but the castle is not open to visitors at the moment."

The ginger turns around to see the castle in its tall intimidating stature. The contrast between the dark castle and the sunny garden made him smile.

"It's okay, I think I'd rather hang around here."

Malleus holds out his arm. "Shall we take a walk?"

Excited at the prospect of clinging to Malleus and exploring the garden, Cater links his arm with his boyfriend and sticks close to him. 

"Lead the way, my dear Prince~"

The couple walk along the garden. Malleus explains about the variety of flowers and plants, pointing out his grandmother's favourite roses in one part of the garden. Cater listens to the fae's words attentively, taking out his camera and snapping a few pictures of the beautiful flowers. At one part of the garden, he asks Malleus to stay still.

"I want to take some candid shots. Just look at the flowers and I'll snap some pics." He moves a bit of distance away from Malleus and steadies his camera.

His boyfriend looks confused at first, before moving his attention to a bed of daffodils, a soft smile naturally forming on his face. Cater clicks away at the camera. After a few pictures, Malleus turns his head to look over at Cater through the camera and smiles. 

_*click*_

Cater views the picture he just took and feels his heart rate pick up at the sight of the beautiful fae smiling to the camera. He makes a mental note to print the picture out and frame it.

Suddenly, he feels a tug on his hair. He quickly turns around only to come face to face with a small fairy floating in front of his face.

"Ah!" he recoils backward in surprise. The fairy, similarly startled, flies away into the trees. 

Hearing his shout, Malleus approaches him. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm okay, just surprised. Was that a fairy?"

"Yes. There's quite a few of them in the garden. They were probably curious to see a new face."

Cater twirls the hair that was tugged by the fairy. "Do they not welcome visitors?"

The fae chuckles at the worried look on his boyfriend's face. "They're harmless. That one was probably teasing you."

Pouting at the statement, Cater changes the topic.

"What other creatures are there in this garden? Ooh~ are they any dryads?" He remembers learning about dryads in Magical Creatures 101 and the fact that they are able to live peacefully around humans.

"The dryads mostly live in the forest outside. They're mobile creatures, but they prefer to stay rooted to a single place. The trees here are just normal trees." Malleus explains.

Cater hums in understanding. 

The fae grins at him. "Do you know what a tree does when it wants to go somewhere?"

"Go somewhere? I don't know." Cater frowns, trying to make sense of the question.

"It leaves." 

A breeze blows over the two standing in the garden.

"... _pftt-_ ahahahaha! Malleus that's so lame!" Cater bursts out laughing at the unexpected pun, holding a hand over his mouth.

The fae merely smiles. "That makes you _lame-er_ for laughing at it."

The pointed way Malleus pronounces the word elicits another round of laughter from Cater. 

After walking a bit more, they decide to take a break under a large oak tree. Malleus brings out a mat out of thin air and lays it on the ground, and afterwards materializes a basket of food. 

They sit next to each other, Cater taking the opportunity to be as close as possible to the other. They weren't particularly hiding their relationship, but they both agreed to keep the affections to a minimum when in public. Being alone in the garden was a perfect opportunity for Cater to be affectionate and he was not going to let it go to waste. 

Malleus takes out an array of food from the basket. Sandwiches, pies, fruits, even tarts are spread out on the mat. Cater takes out the drinks he brought from his bag too. 

The fae picks up a sandwich. "I would love to say I made all these, but honestly these are all the kitchen maids' work. I didn't have time to even plan the menu."

"That's totally understandable. I'm just glad you even have time to spend with me today."

Today is actually a topic Cater wasn't sure whether to bring it up. He knows Malleus invited him to this date because he had free time, but he wasn't sure if Malleus knew the significance behind today's date. 

Whether intentional or not, Cater savors the moment. They eat the food in silence, Cater leaning on his boyfriend's shoulder. Malleus is not used to physical affections, but through his relationship with Cater, he learns to appreciate them. He knows how much his boyfriend enjoys giving and receiving them, so he puts an arm around Cater's waist after a while. The ginger doesn't say anything, but Malleus could see the tint of red on his cheeks. 

After they finish most of the food, Cater rummages through his bag and takes out a pink rectangular box. 

"Here," he offers the box to Malleus. "Chocolates. Umm, happy valentine's day." 

The fae takes the box and stares at it. He knows Cater doesn't enjoy sweet treats, which was why he decided to invite him to a date for valentines. But he didn't think Cater would give him chocolates.

Cater plays with a strand of his hair, feeling awkward at his boyfriend's silence. "I made them. With Trey's help of course. I hope they taste okay."

Malleus looks at his shy boyfriend, who took the time and effort to make the chocolates himself. His precious boyfriend.

"Thank you Diamond. I feel bad that I didn't make anything for you."

The Heartslabyul student stares at him. "Wha- Malleus, you bringing me here to this beautiful garden and spending time with me is more than I could ever ask for. The chocolates are nothing in comparison." 

Malleus puts down the box. He puts a hand on the other's shoulder. "It's not nothing. You put effort to make these chocolates with me in mind. That means everything to me."

Cater finds himself falling in love all over again. He gazes at his boyfriend's emerald eyes, his lustrous black lashes fanning over it. His eyes cast downwards, on the fae's soft-looking lips. He suddenly realized how close they were. He closes his eyes and leans in closer, closing the gap between them, their lips touching. 

Malleus moves his hand from Cater's shoulder to the back of his neck, pulling him closer. Cater's puts a hand to Malleus' chest, feeling the steady heartbeat underneath his palm. He wishes he could stay in that moment forever, just kissing Malleus and being surrounded by pretty flowers.

They parted after a while, softly catching their breaths, matching smiles on their faces. 

Cater feels something light landing on his head. He moves his hand to the object, feeling the soft petal of flowers intertwined. He deducted it was a flower crown. He looks up and sees the fairy from earlier hovering near him. The fairy flies to the left, and then comes back in front of Cater. 

"Thank you...?"

The Diasomnia dorm leader smiles at his boyfriend's confusion. "I think she wants to show you something. Go ahead and follow her."

Hesitantly, Cater gets up and follows the fairy. The small creature tugs at his hair at one point, as if asking him to hurry up. Cater laughs at the cute actions.

"Okay, okay I'm coming."

Malleus watches as Cater follows the fairy. He takes Cater's camera that was lying on the mat, and holds it towards Cater's direction.

_*click*_

The picture he took appears on the small screen, Cater laughing at the fairy, the sun reflected on his bright hair and soft pastel flower crown. Malleus doesn't know where the picture is stored, so he'll ask Cater for the picture afterwards. He thinks he wants to print it out and frame it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A valentine's special where the valentine part doesn't really make an important appearance! 😂  
> This one took longer than an hour, and I had a headache halfway through but I pulled through. Wasn't happy with it at first but after a look over I guess it's pretty okay.
> 
> Hope you enjoy and happy valentine's day~ 💖

**Author's Note:**

> If you follow the jpn fandom, they have a challenge where they draw/write in an hour using the themes set for the week. So I decided to follow this challenge as well, because why not? I hope I can write more frequently by doing this hehe we'll see!


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